Final countdown
With the days until final exams slowly ticking away, students across campus are fervently reading and highlighting, researching and typing, sketching and sculpting, conjugating and calculating, singing and dancing, diagramming and dissecting, philosophizing and psychoanalyzing... Last Monday, public affairs intern Angel Chen captured some of these brilliant minds on film. Above left, elementary education major Eileen Morrow from Long Island is in the Sojourner Truth Library researching her final paper for "Theories of Writing" class. Above right, art education major Alexis Higgins from Massachusetts takes advantage of the unseasonable December, writing and sketching in her journal outside Coykendall Science Building.

Set to commence
The stage is set for SUNY New Paltz' December 2001 Commencement! With 325 candidates and 30 faculty participants, there is sure to be a full house at the Poughkeepsie Civic Center on Saturday. Congratulations to the December Class of '01!

... LAN administrator Joe Acquisto has issued a warning about a new virus. It is called W32/Goner-A, and it arrives with an e-mail attachment that reads: SUBJECT: "Hi"; MESSAGE TEXT: "How are you? When I saw this screen saver, I immediately thought about you, I am in a hurry, I promise you will love it!" As usual, LAN users should restart their computers or log off and log on to update Sophos. Non LAN or home users should update via http://lan.newpaltz.edu.

... This week's "On Campus at SUNY New Paltz" features Lewis Brownstein (Political Science) being interviewed by Devon Duhaney (Secondary Education) on the origins of terrorism and what it means to our society today. Catch it Dec. 11 at noon on WNPC. In the spring, the Center for Instructional Resources will be showing "On Campus" Mondays from 11:45 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. in Lecture Center 104.

... The Workplace with Heart Committee has arranged for $15 flu shots to be given on campus on Dec. 12 from 10 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. in Student Union Building, Room 416. You must reserve a spot by calling either Alan Dunefsky (x3914) or Jen Wait (x3340). Make checks payable to SUNY New Paltz/Workplace with Heart. Wear short sleeves.

... Advice from Cheryl Sykes (Human Resources): The 2002 biweekly health insurance rates have been established and are available for viewing at www.cs.state.ny.us. The Department of Civil Service has extended the deadline for changing plans until Dec. 28, but it is a good idea to do so before Dec. 24 since the Human Resources Office may not be open after that date due to the holidays.

... As we mourn the loss of many fellow Americans, the SUNY New Paltz Foundation extends deep sympathy to those whose lives have been devastated by tragedy. Lucia Mallardi, annual giving coordinator, said, "In times such as these I am reminded of how fortunate we are to be part of the SUNY New Paltz Family, which prides itself in the teachings of tolerance and respect for diversity." Traditionally, it is the annual giving coordinator's responsibility to call upon the faculty and staff during the Annual Faculty and Staff Campaign in request of a gift that ensures that the university can continue to offer quality education to its deserving students. However, the Foundation understands that in these uncertain times giving a gift may not be possible, so the campaign will be postponed until the spring.

The Office of Sponsored Programs is pleased to announce that Stacie Nunes (Electrical and Computer Engineering) has been awarded a five-year, $307,500 grant from the National Science Foundation. The grant was made possible through SUNY Stonybrook under the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Program. Nunes' program will increase the number of underrepresented minorities receiving bachelor's degrees in science, mathematics, engineering and technology.

On Nov. 15, Robert Piluso (Foreign Languages) was elected president of the Alliance Franšaise de Westchester. This chapter is a subdivision of the larger parent organization which is based in Paris. The Alliance Franšaise is a venue for the dissemination and diffusion of the French language and culture throughout the world. Anyone wishing to be placed on the mailing list may contact Piluso at x3485 or pilusor@matrix.newpaltz.edu.

Allyn Bregman (Biology) is the author of Laboratory Investigations in Cell and Molecular Biology, released in October in its fourth edition. The book has been published by John Wiley & Sons since 1983.

Mary Hafeli (Art Education) published an article, "Encountering Student Learning," in the November issue of the journal Art Education.

On Sept. 28, Nozomi Kitagawa ('93/Women's Studies) brought a blank canvas to Union Square and asked the people there to draw something representing peace, love and hope. About 30 people participated, and some began talking about their feelings about the Sept. 11 tragedy. The purpose was to empower people by doing something hopeful and positive rather that expressing the trauma they experienced. Kitagawa also brought this artwork to "March for Peace" the following day in Washington D.C., and it was presented in an art show, "911," in New York City Nov. 9-11 at the Sweatshop Studio. The $10 admission was donated to the American Red Cross.

In a Nov. 9 article in the Daily Freeman, reviewer Kitty Montgomery called Stanton Davis' production of Shakespeare's Henry IV "swashbuckling." According to Montgomery, "Never, as the drama of kings, earls, and princes clashing for rights to the British throne plays out in Parker Theater at SUNY New Paltz do you think 'history lesson.' Still, evocative performances by principals Jason Roholff (Prince Hal), Lucas Patsch (Hotspur), Jason Buhalis (the battle hungry Earl of Douglas), and Blair Wing, as Hotspur's sensuous, noble wife Kate, illuminate the humanity of Shakespeare's heroes, piquing curiosity about the extraordinary times that produced such extraordinary women and men... Interrupted only by the brief distraction of reality at intermission, scenes flow with elegance and tumble, their movement coordinated by Yoav Kaddar and set to not-so-incidental music composed by Stephen Kitsakos and preformed by a five-in-tune pit band and the Eastcheap Vocal Quartet--also finely on the mark... The dramatic panorama, framed by Liming Tang's set and haunted by John Wade's light design, is like a timeless, flashback dream of real time, past. Immerse yourself."

Dorrit Berg, a member of the SUNY New Paltz community since 1983, died Nov. 21. She was an adjunct in the English Department for many years and the executive secretary of the SUNY New Paltz chapter of United University Professions. Also at the university, Berg served as a teaching assistant in the Learning Resource Center, an academic skills specialist in the Educational Opportunity Program, and taught courses in the math and computer science and former health and physical education departments. Berg was born in Berlin, Germany, spent her early childhood in Oslo, Norway, and while still young immigrated to the United States. Berg was published for the first time when she was 13 years old. A short story of hers appeared in Redbook magazine. A member of Phi Beta Kappa, she graduated from Wagner College on Staten Island one year early and with highest honors. She spoke five languages: Norwegian, Swedish, Croatian, German and English. Berg became a SUNY New Paltz alumna in 1989 when she earned her master's degree in English. Berg is survived by her life partner, Nancy Stanich, a former health and physical education professor at New Paltz; two sons; a daughter and two grandchildren. Stanich described Berg as charitable and intolerant of injustice. "She was a kind person, an educator, a humanitarian. She touched a lot of people's lives in a very positive way." A memorial service for Berg is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 15 at 2 p.m. at Copeland Funeral Home on South Putt Corners Road in New Paltz. Anyone interested in speaking at the service may contact Stanich at 255-0909.

News Pulse is published for the faculty and staff of SUNY New Paltz by the Office of Public Affairs, Division of Advancement. It is printed in house on recycled paper and is also available online. To submit information to the newsletter, please complete the online submission form. If you are requesting inclusion in a particular issue, your submission must be received by noon on Tuesday of the prior week. Contact editor Nancy Zellner Fenichel at x3187 with any additional questions.